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Dec 30, 2012
12/12
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if mcconnell would prefer to talk to the vice president, democrats say they are fine with that. there is still significant differences, i'm told and so tonight, the senate will go home, they will be back tomorrow morning and we await news then. kate? >> kelly o'connell watching it all on capitol hill. president obama has been trying to turn the heat on congress this weekend, applying new pressure on this interview with david gregory on "meet the press." nbc's kristen welker has more on that angle from the white house. good evening. >> reporter: kate you good evening. the president has repeatedly blamed republicans for the fiscal cliff stalemate and now, he is doubling down on that criticism. on "meet the press," president obama continued his public campaign to pressure congress. >> if congress doesn't act, then everybody's taxes go up. and for the average family that could mean a loss of $2,000 in income and the whole economy could slow down at a time went economy's actually starting to pick up. >> reporter: he, again, called on lawmakers to strike a deal or hold a vote on his p
if mcconnell would prefer to talk to the vice president, democrats say they are fine with that. there is still significant differences, i'm told and so tonight, the senate will go home, they will be back tomorrow morning and we await news then. kate? >> kelly o'connell watching it all on capitol hill. president obama has been trying to turn the heat on congress this weekend, applying new pressure on this interview with david gregory on "meet the press." nbc's kristen welker has...
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Dec 30, 2012
12/12
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but because i think it's been very hard for speaker boehner and republican leader mcconnell to accept the fact that taxes on the wealthiest americans should go up a little bit. as part of an overall deficit reduction package. >> you talk about a dysfunction in washington. you signed this legislation setting up the fiscal cliff 17 months ago. how accountable are you for the fact that washington can't get anything done and we're at this deadline again? >> well i have to tell you, david, if you look at my track record over the last two years, i cut spending by over $1 trillion in 2011. i campaigned on the promise of being willing to reduce the deficit in a serious way, in a balanced approach of spending cuts and tax increases on the wealthy, while keeping middle-class taxes low. i put forward a very specific proposal to do that. i negotiated with speaker boehner in good faith and moved more than halfway in order to achieve a grand bargain. i offered over $1 trillion in additional spending cuts. so that we would have $2 of spending cuts for every $1 of increased revenue. i think anybody o
but because i think it's been very hard for speaker boehner and republican leader mcconnell to accept the fact that taxes on the wealthiest americans should go up a little bit. as part of an overall deficit reduction package. >> you talk about a dysfunction in washington. you signed this legislation setting up the fiscal cliff 17 months ago. how accountable are you for the fact that washington can't get anything done and we're at this deadline again? >> well i have to tell you,...
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Dec 29, 2012
12/12
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reporter: in the political cliff hanger sources close to the talks say senate leaders harry reid and mitch mcconnell are drafting a small plan that could include extending unemployment insurance benefits pro-tkting about 30 million americans from paying the alternative minimum tax and allowing tax rates to increase on the wealthiest americans, but this issue remains a major sticking point with many republicans resisting any tax increase at all. economists say the last-minute process calls into question washington's ability to deal with the hard issues of tax reform and deficit reduction. >> the prospects for the economy are incredibly dim until we put in place a bigger deal, tackle these challenges, and put some certainty into the economy and boost confidence. >> reporter: meanwhile, americans watched with worry and frustration. >> i think they're all failing us a great deal and i'm so sick and tired of them fighting. >> the equivalent of worried about your mortgage after you're already homeless. so it's, like i said, sad. they have a job to do and they're not doing it. >> reporter: now, with public
reporter: in the political cliff hanger sources close to the talks say senate leaders harry reid and mitch mcconnell are drafting a small plan that could include extending unemployment insurance benefits pro-tkting about 30 million americans from paying the alternative minimum tax and allowing tax rates to increase on the wealthiest americans, but this issue remains a major sticking point with many republicans resisting any tax increase at all. economists say the last-minute process calls into...
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Dec 28, 2012
12/12
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one is that leader mcconnell is actively engaged. you can't pass anything in the senate without democratic and republican votes because of the 60-vote barrier. we only have 53. for the first time, leader mcconnell is speaking to the president. if the senate is going to be the place where action starts, you need both of them there. the second reason for optimism is boehner is back at the table. because you can't pass something just through the senate. we see what a mess the house is. they couldn't even pass speaker boehner's own plan b. the fact that he's come back and the four of them are at the table means to me we could come up with some kind of agreement that would avoid the main parts of the fiscal cliff, particularly taxes going up on middle class people. now, i am hopeful, and it can be a balanced package. we've always said it should be a balanced package. the problem has not been democrats being willing to do cuts. we did $1 trillion of them last year. we're willing to do more this year. the problem is revenues. >> senator thu
one is that leader mcconnell is actively engaged. you can't pass anything in the senate without democratic and republican votes because of the 60-vote barrier. we only have 53. for the first time, leader mcconnell is speaking to the president. if the senate is going to be the place where action starts, you need both of them there. the second reason for optimism is boehner is back at the table. because you can't pass something just through the senate. we see what a mess the house is. they...
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Dec 29, 2012
12/12
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i'm confident senator mcconnell will do the same. everybody, this is -- whatever we come up with is going to be imperfect. >> reporter: a republican aide said house speaker john boehner is awaiting senate action before weighing in. earlier in the day, some republicans blamed the president for the impasse. >> i agree that it is the president's responsibility to lay out a plan and to bring people together. but it's a total dereliction of duty, and candidly a lack of courage to deal with these issues. >> reporter: the uncertainty has started to affect the markets, and economists warn going over the cliff will impact a lot of americans quickly. now president obama has said that he is confident that his plan could make it through both chambers. but of course in the house, that will be a bigger challenge where he would need to get a substantial number of republicans to vote for it. the house and senate are expected to be back in session tomorrow. erica? >> all right. thanks. >>> so what exactly does going over the cliff mean for your walle
i'm confident senator mcconnell will do the same. everybody, this is -- whatever we come up with is going to be imperfect. >> reporter: a republican aide said house speaker john boehner is awaiting senate action before weighing in. earlier in the day, some republicans blamed the president for the impasse. >> i agree that it is the president's responsibility to lay out a plan and to bring people together. but it's a total dereliction of duty, and candidly a lack of courage to deal...